What was the last movie you've seen?

[Stark]

I'm leaving in a few to go see Monsters U with the kiddo. He's hugely psyched out, I'm dreading it will be as predictable and soulless as the first one...

Fortunately he's also excited about Despicable Me 2, which I have much higher hopes for. That one should be fun in a few weeks.

Is this a troll post? Monsters Inc. is excellent. And soulless? The end always gets me a little. I've seen this movie at least 50 or 60 times, as it is my middle child's favorite and I can't say I wish she would've chosen a different one, because there are still some parts that make me laugh every time.

How was MU?

[fastbilly1]

The first half of Grand Prix. I have been meaning to watch it as an adult, and still appreciate the racing parts, but the storylines of the drivers I have no real attachment to or desire to watch.

The opening is still amazing:

[Retrodude]

I'm leaving in a few to go see Monsters U with the kiddo. He's hugely psyched out, I'm dreading it will be as predictable and soulless as the first one...

Fortunately he's also excited about Despicable Me 2, which I have much higher hopes for. That one should be fun in a few weeks.

Is this a troll post? Monsters Inc. is excellent. And soulless? The end always gets me a little. I've seen this movie at least 50 or 60 times, as it is my middle child's favorite and I can't say I wish she would've chosen a different one, because there are still some parts that make me laugh every time.

How was MU?

MU is fantastic. Even though it's not Pixar's best film, I think it might be my favorite of theirs, primarily because I really identify with Mike's character arc on a deeply personal level.

As a filmmaker, I have tons of potentially great original ideas, but when I try to write anything, it just falls flat. It was hard to come to the realization that I'm better at adapting others' work than I am at writing my own, but I've come to terms with it. If I have to put my pride aside and let someone else turn my ideas into screenplays, I'm okay with that.

[MrPopo]

As it comes with no surprise, Bay's TMNT will include lots of camera humping of a supermodel-esque April O'Neil.

http://www.aintitcool.com/node/62997

Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuugggh! Why did you remind me of the existence of this?

I look at that picture and I can't help but think that the original movie had some pretty good looking martial arts while the guys were wearing full-on turtle suits with animatronic heads.

[dsheinem]

not a troll post, really:

Monsters Inc. was better than Monsters U, and I thought (previously) Monsters Inc. was the worst Pixar film I'd seen by a pretty wide margin. Monsters U now holds that distinction.

it is a great comedy and supplies the laughs.

Me and ALL THE PEOPLE in the movie theater I saw the film in INCLUDING MANY KIDS would largely disagree with you. I don't think there was a single scene to garner more than a few chuckles from the audience, and I heard lots more of "do we have more popcorn?" and "can I go the bathroom?" and side conversations than I heard people enjoying/responding to the film. I get that it's a comedy, I guess - but jokes should be funny and (ideally) multi-layered so that they work with wide audiences. There were so, so few of these in here and the ones that were there usually seemed obvious, forced, and fell flat.

Cars 2 (2011), Brave (2012), MU (2013) = Pixar's sharp decline. I never thought it would get to a point where I enjoy non-Pixar CGI films more than those by the team that made Up and Wall-E, but over the past few years, this has been increasingly true. I am afraid at this point that Finding Dory (or whatever they call it) will be just another nail in their coffin. They'll make a mint, sure, but at this point they are coasting on their pedigree and animation talent - no longer on their storytelling and film making talents. The fact that they've basically become a sequel-house should clue everyone in to that...

[Stark]

Cars is my least favorite out of the ones I've watched. I refuse to watch Cars 2, because I didn't like the first one and have only seen bits and pieces of Brave, so I can't really comment. I'm super disappointed that they're making Planes, which is in the same universe as Cars, because I really don't like that one and I kind of despise Dane Cook. Finding Nemo may be my favorite, so I'll be curious to see Finding Dory, but I doubt I'll be able to see in theaters.

So my order is probably Finding Nemo, then Toy Story, then MI, then The Incredibles, not sure after that, probably Toy Story 2.

[dsheinem]

Cars is my least favorite out of the ones I've watched. I refuse to watch Cars 2, because I didn't like the first one and have only seen bits and pieces of Brave, so I can't really comment. I'm super disappointed that they're making Planes, which is in the same universe as Cars, because I really don't like that one and I kind of despise Dane Cook. Finding Nemo may be my favorite, so I'll be curious to see Finding Dory, but I doubt I'll be able to see in theaters.

So my order is probably Finding Nemo, then Toy Story, then MI, then The Incredibles, not sure after that, probably Toy Story 2.

Ok, here goes my ranking of Pixar films:

1. Wall-E
2. Up
3. Finding Nemo
4. Toy Story
5. Toy Story 3
6. Ratatouille
7. The Incredibles
8. Toy Story 2
9. Brave
10. Monsters, Inc.
11. Monster U

Didn't see all of/saw enough to not be interested
-A Bug's Life
-Cars
-Cars 2

EDIT: 2-6 is really a crapshoot, too - they are all very close for me and could switch around at any time...

[Ack]

Cars 2 (2011), Brave (2012), MU (2013) = Pixar's sharp decline. I never thought it would get to a point where I enjoy non-Pixar CGI films more than those by the team that made Up and Wall-E, but over the past few years, this has been increasingly true. I am afraid at this point that Finding Dory (or whatever they call it) will be just another nail in their coffin. They'll make a mint, sure, but at this point they are coasting on their pedigree and animation talent - no longer on their storytelling and film making talents. The fact that they've basically become a sequel-house should clue everyone in to that...

Any thoughts that this might be Disney's doing? Cars came out right around the time Disney acquired them in 2006, and Cars 2 was announced in 2008. Also, budgets for Pixar films fluctuated a fair bit before the Disney acquisition (topping out around $120 million for A Bug's Life and then later around that for Cars), but have steadily grown since then to $200 million for Toy Story 3 and then Cars 2.

[Stark]

I probably should have used IMDB or something when spouting that list, I love Up and Ratatouille. I like Wall-E in aesthetic, but I really didn't like a.) the real people in there or b.) the in-your-face-consumerism-is-bad-message, it was way too heavy handed.

[Ack]

I probably should have used IMDB or something when spouting that list, I love Up and Ratatouille. I like Wall-E in aesthetic, but I really didn't like a.) the real people in there or b.) the in-your-face-consumerism-is-bad-message, it was way too heavy handed.

Aww, come on. You didn't like Johnny 5 being used to preach to us about environmentalism and the evils of consumerism by a company owned lock, stock, and barrel by Disney?